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PWM declares Mantis “the next generation of OSCar” as V2 update adds original wavetables from the cult classic synth.

The PWM Mantis is a synthesizer with a rich history: PWM head Paul Whittington co-created the instrument with the late Chris Huggett, the influential British synth designer and engineer behind the EDP Wasp, OSC OSCar and Novation Bass Station.

Prior to Huggett’s passing in 2020, he and Whittington collaborated on the Mantis, which became Huggett’s final synth project. The instrument is billed as a spiritual successor to both the Wasp and OSCar, two cult classic monosynths with their own distinct sonic characters.

Following its acquisition of the OSC brand last year, PWM has unveiled a V2 firmware update for Mantis that firmly positions the synth as the “next generation” of the OSCar.

The update brings nine of the OSCar’s original preset waveforms to the Mantis, an arsenal that includes ‘Organ’, ‘Harpsichord’, ‘Double Pulse’, ‘Strong Lead’ and High-Density’ waveforms alongside the standard triangle, saw and pulse waves.

The v2 update also expands Mantis’ polyphony, giving the synth four polyphonic voices, each with two oscillators, a sub oscillator and detune oscillator, adding up to a total of 16 available oscillators. Previously Mantis was a duophonic synth.

On the hardware front, Mantis is a hybrid instrument with digital oscillators running through dual multi-mode, state-variable analogue filters that can be routed in both series and parallel, an architecture once again inspired by the OSCar.

Check PWM Mantis Firmware V.2 info:

PWM is running a special offer in recognition of the update, and for a limited time any new purchase of Mantis will net the buyer a copy of GForce’s impOSCar 3 plugin.

Find out more and download the update on PWM website.

Spitfire Audio’s latest instrument captures the sound of the historic Strawberry Studios.

‘This isn’t just a piano, it’s the 1901 Steinway B heard across albums from Elton John, David Bowie, and Fleetwood Mac’.

Many of software developers have claimed to capture the character of a historic studio in plugin form, from Waves’ Abbey Road Collection to Universal Audio’s Sound City Studios and Ocean Way Studios plugins.

The latest studio to have its magic distilled in software is the storied Strawberry Studios, a legendary recording space housed in Le Château d’Hérouville, an 18th-century château located in rural France. Spitfire Audio’s latest instrument, Château Piano, samples a 1901 Steinway B piano from Strawberry Studios that can be heard on some of the most iconic albums of the 1970s.

The world’s first residential recording studio, Strawberry Studios opened its doors in 1962, before becoming one of the era’s most sought-after studio spaces in the following decade. Playing host to a jaw-dropping list of names that included Elton John, Pink Floyd, Fleetwood Mac, David Bowie and Iggy Pop, the studio has since been dubbed “France’s Abbey Road”.

Making up the mythology surrounding Le Château d’Hérouville are some fascinating tales: the place is rumoured to be haunted by the ghost of Frédéric Chopin, and Bowie, Tony Visconti and Brian Eno are said to have experienced a brush with the supernatural while recording Low at Strawberry Studios in 1976.

Elton John has a particularly strong connection to the Château, having recorded three of his best-loved early albums there, even naming one in its honour: Honky Château. The studio’s Steinway B grand piano can be heard on many of Elton’s most famous tunes, including Crocodile Rock, Rocket Man and Goodbye, Yellow Brick Road.

After Strawberry Studios closed in 1985, the château spent several decades in disrepair, before being purchased in 2015 by musicians and sound engineers Jean Taxis and Thierry Garacino. The pair have since restored the studio, and its Steinway B grand piano, to their former glory, and Le Château d’Hérouville reopened in 2020.

In developing Château Piano, Spitfire Audio has meticulously sampled the studio’s Steinway B in the studio’s historic “George Sand” live room with a collection of valve and condenser microphones, including a pair of vintage Neumann U67s in the same position as Elton John’s original recordings.

Eight individual signals can be blended in the plugin’s UI, recorded using multiple mic placements and effects treatments, and Château Piano features a number of onboard digital effects spanning high- and low-pass filters, chorus, flanger and reverb, alongside a selection of 37 presets.

“They all told us, if they had made this record elsewhere, it wouldn’t have been the same. They wouldn’t have written these arrangements – it was the Château that inspired them,” said studio owner Thierry Garacino in a press release. “You play three chords and straight away… that’s the sound of Elton John.”

Spitfire Audio Château Piano is compatible with macOS and Windows. Château Piano available now and priced at an introductory discount of £103/$127,

Find out more on Spitfire Audio website.

Blackstar’s audio interface range just got a lot more portable with the pocket-sized Polar Go.

Blackstar Amplification has launched the Polar Go, an audio interface that is small enough to fit in your pocket and is designed to work seamlessly with your smartphone, tablet or laptop.

The Polar Go is equipped with Blackstar’s proprietary ProCapture Stereo Mics system, and has a combo XLR and 1/4” input, with +48V phantom power so you could hook it up with a condenser mic. There are dual USB-C outputs – one for power, one for data – and a 3.5 mm output for monitoring via studio headphones.

“Polar Go is more than a mobile interface,” says Blackstar. “It’s a complete, pocket-sized studio designed for the modern creator.”

The Polar Go is a simple audio two-knob interface (for Input and Output volume) that is small enough to fit inside your pocket. And it is designed for creators of all stripes, not just guitarists.

Blackstar has made this for singer-songwriters, rappers, spoken word artists, poets, comedians, podcasters and streamers, too. It is compatible with iOS, macOS, Android, and Windows, and with all major recording apps – GarageBand, BandLab, Zoom etc.

As the promo pic below suggests, you could take this down to your local park and track acoustic guitars – the birds and aircraft hum might even add a sort of field music authenticity to your work, open chords in the open air.

Those stereo mics have a lot of range. Blackstar says they’ll “capture anything from ASMR to a grand piano”.

Under the hood, there is a DSP engine that applies the onboard reverb, compression, EQ and noise control. The Polar Go is designed to be used by the novice and expert alike.

The Polar Go’s rechargeable battery will give you up to six hours of on-the-go recording time. The accompanying Polar Go app lets you shape the sounds you are recording.

There is onboard video recording support, so you can synch up your A/V, presets for podcasts, guitars, vocals and more to get you started, and a Magic Wand tool to gussy up your sound in an instant.

“Whether you’re a singer-songwriter, podcaster, livestreamer or filmmaker, Polar Go transforms your audio from phone-quality to studio-ready instantly,” says Blackstar. “Just plug in and create, anywhere, anytime.”

The Polar Go is available now, priced £79/$129. For more information, head over to Blackstar Amplification site.